What to do in May

Ah, May…caught somewhere between Easter and the peak tourist season. Warmer and drier than April, but not as hot as the summer.

In other words, a decent time to visit Vienna. Particularly if you enjoy your music, food and drink, for May is a month full of classical and culinary festivals.

• Book a classical concert experience* for your trip
• See also:
  • This week’s event tips
  • April & June
  • Find May accommodation

Top activities in May 2025

So, aside from the usual museums, tours, concerts and other sights, what does the month offer the discerning visitor to Vienna?

My quick tip

With the shift from spring to summer in May, consider taking in an appropriate soundtrack in the form of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons.

Members of the Orchestra 1756 perform the piece* regularly in the baroque Karlskirche church, and I thoroughly enjoyed my visit.

Exhibitions in May

(Enjoy Klimt at Lower Belvedere)

We have plenty of treats this month…

Top tip

Insider tip

Highlights

• One of the whole year’s highlights appears at Lower Belvedere: exploring Gustav Klimt’s methods and materials in the Pigment & Pixel exhibition: I loved the remarkable reconstructions of the lost faculty paintings. May is also your last chance there to see the best of Slovenian painting 1848-1919 (until May 25th)

• Upper Belvedere continues the Klimt theme from May 15th with a deep dive into his unfinished work, The Bride

• The Kunsthistorisches Museum blesses us with masterpieces by Arcimboldo, Bruegel, and Bassano (and others of their time)

• Enjoy some renaissance greats, including numerous works by Leonardo da Vinci and Dürer in an exhibition of drawings. Matthew Wong’s art stands in juxtaposition with selected works by van Gogh at the Albertina. And we have lovely solo exhibitions for Jenny Saville and Francesca Woodman

• Avant garde art from the prestigious Viehof Collection appears at the Albertina Modern along with (from May 7th) drawings & more by none other than Damien Hirst

• Admire the photographic talent of the great Anton Corbijn over at the Bank Austria Kunstforum Wien

• Discover one of Austria’s art movements with the Wien Museum MUSA’s look at Viennese Realism post 1950

• …or discover one of Austria’s most renowned artists: the final years of Egon Schiele’s life get a biographical and artistic review at the Leopold Museum. The same location also brings us the gorgeous art of the Biedermeier era

• Immerse yourself in Austrian and German expressionism over at the Heidi Horten Collection with a cross-genre dive into silent film, too. They also present Vienna itself, as portrayed in the art of Balthasar Wigand, Rudolf von Alt and Stefan Oláh

• Strauss year continues at the Theatermuseum with an exhibition on the composer’s life and works

• Not to be outdone, Mozart has a special exhibition over at the Mozarthaus. It covers how his dining habits also shaped his music

• Ever wondered how Vienna looked and felt after WWII? Or how international culture shaped Austria’s own character in those years? Answers in the Wien Museum’s fantastic Controlled Freedom exhibition. And (from May 22nd) learn how reinforced concrete helped shape the 19th-century cityscape

• Unpack the miniskirt and oversized sunglasses: mumok takes us back to the art of the 60s in the context of seminal art events and publications of the time. They also return to the 1980s for an introspective retrospective round the museum’s collection

• Your final opportunity to see highlights of 21st-century Austrian design at the Aut Now exhibition in the MAK (until May 18th) and the intriguing creations and continuing influence of the Enfant Terrible of the Wiener Werkstätte: Dagobert Peche (until May 11th)

• The MAK then starts a major exhibition exploring aspects of water and water management with an eye to artistic positions on the topic (from May 21st)

• See the concept of deity explored from various perspectives in an exhibition at the Jewish Museum, as well as (from May 8th) a photo exhibition reflecting the legacy of WWII and the Shoah in today’s world

• The Weltmuseum ponders the impact of the Qur’an on the evolution of European thinking and throws a sociocultural spotlight on the garment that is the lowly (or not so lowly) trousers

• The Technisches Museum celebrates 100 years of radio in Austria with an exhibition on the cultural and technological evolution of the medium

• Another century of history pops up in the National Library’s state hall with a photo exhibition taking you through the decades and momentous eras

For fuller listings at the major venues, see my curated overview.

More art(s)…

• The Art Austria art fair enlivens the MuseumsQuartier from May 8th to 11th with national and international works

• For art in its broadest sense, the huge Wiener Festwochen multidisciplinary art festival starts this month (May 16th to June 22nd) with its wide-ranging programme

• The Klima Biennale takes place in the context of climate change but is strongly focused on contemporary art perspectives. The next one is in 2026, though

• The Affordable Art Fair arrives in Vienna from May 22nd to 25th over at the Marx Halle

See also some of the fairs listed below…

Fairs & fandoms

(Visit Edelstoff in the Marx Halle this month)

A few tips for those with a hankering for creativity you can buy:

• Vienna COMIX (May 31st to June 1st) is a fair and convention covering comics in their widest sense with, for example, cosplay and plenty of Star Wars, too

• The Edelstoff design market features lots of independent designers (May 3rd and 4th)

• The WAMP design market showcases the delights produced by numerous independent artists and designers (May 31st)

• The Kunst & Design art and design market drops into Vienna’s main brewery for a weekend (May 10th and 11th)

(The Cream Vienna market visits the REAKTOR Wien in 2025)

• Think of the annual Stefflkirtag fair outside the main cathedral as a spring market with the touch of a funfair about it (May 29th to June 9th)

• Cream Vienna promises a celebration of the good things in life: quality not quantity as a motto and featuring products, creative cuisine and top wines (May 17th to 18th)

• Fanzineist Vienna: an international fair that presents self-published and independent publications in creative fields like art, design and literature (May 16th to 18th)

• The GEMMA design market has handmade and vintage design as well as ceramics, art and more (May 23rd to 25th)

• Animarket is a pop culture market with a strong focus on anime and manga (May 1st)

Bring a glass & plate

(The national drink)

Not all the slopes in Austria are for skiing down. The country has a lot of vineyards, for example (as does Vienna itself).

Last time I checked the statistics, Austrians also drink more beer per head than anybody except our thirsty Czech neighbours.

Vienna’s bars and restaurants allow you to taste the local beverages, or you can visit these festivals in May:

• If the idea of wine sounds tempting, then consider the VieVinum, an international wine festival at the Hofburg palace (as a biannual event, the next edition is May 16th to 18th, 2026)

• The four-day open-air Vienna Beer Festival (May 8th to 11th) brings brewers big and small together in the very centre of Vienna

• Lifting the alcohol content a little, the Vienna Gin Festival is scheduled for May 9th and 10th in the historical Semperdepot

A fine glass of wine or beer goes better with a fine dish of regional food. And, as luck would have it, Vienna has plenty of wider food festivals in May, too.

(That famous central European dark bread)

• The huge Genuss Festival in the Stadtpark city park (May 9th to 11th) showcases high-quality food & drink from Austria’s agricultural and viticultural regions

• The 3-day Waldviertelpur festival (May 21st to 23rd) features the best of the Waldviertel region (a rural area northwest of Vienna). This includes their rather hearty cuisine, particularly a myriad different things you can do with poppy seeds

• Burgenland is a small province east of Vienna, and the Burgenland Kultinarium festival (May 20th to 23rd) encourages you to learn about the area with the help of large quantities of its gastronomic output

• The European Street Food festival (May 10th and 11th) rolls into town with trucks and stalls tempting you with a wide diversity of culinary delights from around the globe

• The Wiener Zitrustage or Vienna Citrus Days (May 23rd to 25th) add a little fizz and colour to the month in the rather apt location of the Schönbrunn Palace orangery

If you want to run off the accumulated calories, the ASICS Austrian Women’s Run takes place in May (on the 25th in 2025).

Another running event held this month is the Wings for Life World Run, with a flagship event in Vienna (May 4th).

Enjoy the music & celebrations

(The Steffl Kirtag at the cathedral)

The 2025 May festivals don’t end there, either.

• The big Pride event begins this month (May 31st to June 15th), though the highlight parade is in June

• Numerous Christian institutions open their doors to visitors at the Long Night of the Churches (May 23rd) with an evening of events ranging from organ recitals to rooftop tours

• The Vienna Blues Spring festival stretches across the whole of May in 2025

• The wean hean festival has a series of performances reflecting the Viennese song tradition (April 26th to May 18th)

(Heldenplatz – home to the Fest der Freude open-air concert)

• Donauinsel Open Air is four successive one-day music festivals (May 16th & 17th and 23rd & 24th) on our long artificial island

• The Gemischter Satz festival at the Konzerthaus venue combines one of Vienna’s notable wine products with classical music and more (May 1st to 3rd)

• The Fest der Freude (May 8th) celebrates the liberation of Vienna and the end of Nazi rule with a free concert on Heldenplatz square next to the Hofburg palace. The Vienna Symphony orchestra performs, with the event also in remembrance of those who suffered at the hands of that occupation

Buy some popcorn

(A regular film festival host)

International film festivals fill Viennese screens during May. For example:

• The prestigious Vienna Shorts festival with its focus on short-form filmmaking (May 27th to June 1st)

• The Ethnocineca international documentary film festival, which focuses on critical evaluation of social, political and cultural structures (May 8th to 14th)

• The mini version of the Slash Film Festival featuring all things fantastical (May 8th to 10th)

• The inaugural edition of the Wiener Arbeitsfilmfestival (May 19th to 23rd), which tackles the world of work in film form

And now a mention for a couple of major events close to my heart…

#wienliebe

(A neogothic background, white canopies and plenty of Viennese food and drink)

#wienliebe first took place in 2024. I don’t actually have dates at the time of writing for any 2025 edition, but I sincerely hope it repeats. The event presented the best of Vienna’s food, drink, music, crafts and more in a three-day festival. Last time out:

• Some of the famous gastronomic, brewing and vineyard addresses in the city provided the food, beer and wine

• A stage hosted musical and other performances across a range of genres associated with Vienna (from classical onwards)

• A selection of stalls showcased the crafted products of small enterprises and (which might surprise you) even Vienna’s agricultural side

4GAMECHANGERS

(The 4GAMECHANGERS stage; press photo courtesy of and © 4GAMECHANGERS & Pakugraphy)

Another large festival is 4GAMECHANGERS (next dates TBA, possibly shifting to later after a creative break), which brings together thousands of people from around the world who are interested in taking us into a better future (and many who are actively doing so).

At the previous event, each day was a separate track, with talks, panels and other activities around a wide diversity of relevant topics: from entrepreneurship to education, culture to climate change, health to human rights.

Languages were English and German (with simultaneous translation of any German talks into English).

The event has always had plenty of star power (and not just in the surrounding entertainment). Charlize Theron and Amal Clooney both appeared recently, for example.

Go for a swim

Vienna’s numerous outdoor public swimming facilities open up for the summer from early May. These include:

• Family facilities, with shallow pools and family-friendly prices
• Multipurpose facilities, with both indoor and outdoor pools
• Summer facilities with open-air pools. Look, particularly, for the large recreational areas along the Alte Donau lake, such as the Gänsehäufel

Seasonal tip

Enjoy the flowers

(Enjoy the roses)

By early May, the spring and early summer flower displays planted by the city or national parks authorities are normally in full bloom. Try, for example:

• Schönbrunn Palace: the landscaped gardens in front of the palace are gorgeous. But also take the time to drop into the Kronprinzengarten, a privy garden with geometric shapes made of flower beds and different-coloured gravel

• The Rathauspark: the park surrounding the Rathausplatz square in the centre is usually full of tulips

• The gardens between the two baroque palaces at Belvedere should have a flower or three by now

• The Volksgarten: a public gardens opposite the Rathausplatz and home to hundreds of different rose varieties

• Hirschstetten: a large (and beautiful) landscaped municipal gardens and park area with various thematic zones and animals, too